A Brew Story

The Oxford Companion to Beer, by the Numbers

Today’s the first day of your Oktoberfest-free existence. In such trying times, it helps to have a companion: beer. Also: TheOxford Companion to Beer, an actual encyclopedia of all things (seriously, all things) beer. But because 900 pages is a bit much, we’re giving you a sampling, broken down by the numbers.

Pounds of knowledge here: 3.8 poundsWeight of average human brain: 3 pounds“Beer experts” consulted for this book: 166Percentage of readers who’ll Google “Beer Expert Jobs” after this: 99%Beer-related entries in book: more than 1,100Beer styles described in mouthwatering detail: 107Pages devoted to nonalcoholic beer: less than 2Page on which you’ll find out that alcohol consumption increased during Prohibition: 669Countries with categories of music entirely dedicated to drinking songs: 2US national anthems with melodies stolen from English drinking songs: 1Sentences reading, “The history of beer, quite literally, is the history of human civilization”: 1Sentences that tell you elephants, monkeys and bats love alcohol: 1Beer museums in the world: 34Vacation days you have left: hopefully about 34Days you have to memorize all this before next Oktoberfest: 354